McKeown Drive in Estella is interesting. It is as straight as an arrow but it will loosen teeth, after one pass, guaranteed ... riding the dirt shoulder saves teeth.

If you have the time, please post the best or most interesting rural roads.

Warren.

PS, These shots are from exploring the Murrumbidgee River. Narimba Lagoon (aka Grand Canyon Lagoon). Track was very slippery, yesterday. After the floods, of a couple of months ago, this is the colour of the grass. Extraordinary.

"But on steep descending...Larson TT have bad effect on the mind of a rider" - MadRider from Suji, Korea 2001.

Once you're through Ashmont then over the bridge at Kapooka, coasting is a subtle and long down-hill, all the way to The Rock.

I asked NSW National Parks for permission to camp for a while at The Rock, to have the time to do several paintings of The Rock. If I don't get permission by the end of this week, I'm going to ride the BNT North to Cessnock and paint Baal Bone Gap, Myrtle Creek, The Wedding Cake, the Cat's Ears, Watts Mountain, Bylong Valley, historic Pickering Pass and Bell's Gap.

I'm packed and ready to scoot.

Warren.

PS, from the first post substitute this image for the duplicated image.

"But on steep descending...Larson TT have bad effect on the mind of a rider" - MadRider from Suji, Korea 2001.

If you are riding out towards Wee Jasper on the SW Slopes of NSW at any stage, include Sawyers Gully Road, if time permits ... it is only 18ks long. Sawyers Gully Road joins the hard topped Mountain Creek and Yass-Wee Jasper roads. Sawyer Gully lies between the Northern Brindabella Ranges and the rasor-back ridges that form the southern escarpments of the elevated Narrungullen Plain and Little Plain.

gilruth3, G'day. I've a 2010 Giant Anthem X3 (an entry level XC racing mountain bike) that I take touring around the Murrumbidgee, the Great Divide and the Great Escarpment. The only changes that I've made to the bike are, fitting a Sport Manie 'Passisti' aka Passo saddle (http://www.smanie.com/get_page.php?stru ... d=61&lid=1), Ergo Contact bar ends and swapping SPDs to combination SPD/platform pedals. I also haul an Extrawheel Voyager Solo trailer and have a beam rack with side rails.

Warren.

Last edited by WarrenH on Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.

"But on steep descending...Larson TT have bad effect on the mind of a rider" - MadRider from Suji, Korea 2001.

What is the most appropriate term, a successful reconnoitre or just a fool's errand?

While I was waiting for a map to arrive for my coming trip (which has now finally been delivered), last week I did a reccy on foot of Stockyard Spur to Little Ginini Mountain, in the Brindies. I like to vary the ways of crossing these mountains, so I thought if I could bring (like wheel and carry like) ma'-bike and Exrtrawheel trailer down Stockyard Spur, it would add a piece to my touring jig-saw and I might lo be the first MTB touring idiot ever to do that. Thanks to some flat bits the slope averaged 22.5% but there's lot of 45% slope at times and no real rideable track. This is a catchment wilderness. Riding isn't allowed off track or in the gazetted Bimberi Wilderness.

27 years ago, I went up Stockyard Spur to Coolamon Plain and then Long Plain through Blackfellas Gap. After Blackfellas Gap it was downhill to Oldfields Hut and Pocket Saddle Hut, past the Blue Water Holes at Caves Creek. The track was only a goat track then. Things have improved greatly nowadays and now there are many hundreds of newly installed rustic wooden steps on the big spur. I'm totally in awe of the people who build steps. They have turned Stockyard Spur into an Empire State Building length of staircase ... in parts.

So here are some shots from the reccy, from the Cotter River at Corin Dam to Little Ginini Mountain ... and a Garmin Oztopo 3D map .

The land effect on the wind, creating catspaws, looked cool. Bimberi (1900m+) on the left is the ACT's highest Mountain. The ride to Corin Dam is popular with roadies.

A 1:25,000 topo showing how wild this country is.

View of Mount Franklin from up on Stockyard Spur. The highlights of the day were, we saw 5 Emus, dozens of Flame Robins, a few Stinkers (Swamp Wallaby), one Red Neck (Red Shoulder Wallaby) and several Eastern Greys. The forests looked very healthy, the views were stunning and the track across the top of the range looks not too difficult but a bit hilly.

When we finally reached the top, the track on the flat, was well appreciated.

Mount Gingera late in the day.

The big spur, Garmin Oztopo V3 in 3D at 100%.

Warren.

"But on steep descending...Larson TT have bad effect on the mind of a rider" - MadRider from Suji, Korea 2001.

Who is online

About the Australian Cycling Forums

The largest cycling discussion forum in Australia for all things bike; from new riders to seasoned bike nuts, the Australian Cycling Forums are a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.